Hurricane Irma Victims Get Filing/Payment Relief

Victims of Hurricane Irma, which began on September 4, 2017, in parts of Florida, and on September 5, 2017, in part of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, may qualify for tax relief from the IRS. Taxpayers in the following areas are eligible for relief:

Irma Victims

In Florida: the counties of Broward; Charlotte; Clay; Collier; Duval; Flagler; Hillsborough; Lee; Manatee; Miami-Dade; Monroe; Palm Beach; Pinellas; Putnam; Sarasota and St. Johns. In Puerto Rico: the municipalities of Culebra and Vieques. In the Virgin Islands: St. John and St. Thomas.

Filing/Payment Dates Postponed

The tax relief postpones various tax filing and payment deadlines starting on September 4, 2017, in Florida and September 5, 2017, in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. As a result, affected individuals and businesses will have until January 31, 2018, to file returns and pay taxes due during this period.

This includes the September 15, 2017, and January 16, 2018, deadlines for making quarterly estimated tax payments. It also includes 2016 income tax returns for individuals that received a tax-filing extension until October 16, 2017. However, the IRS noted that tax payments related to extended 2016 returns were originally due on April 18, 2017. Therefore, those payments are not eligible for this relief.

In addition, a variety of business tax deadlines are also affected, including the October 31 deadline for quarterly payroll and excise tax returns. The IRS is waiving late-deposit penalties for federal payroll and excise tax deposits normally due normally due during the first 15 days of the disaster period.

“This has been a devastating storm for the Southeastern part of the country, and the IRS will move quickly to provide tax relief for victims, just as we did following Hurricane Harvey,” IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said. ” The IRS will continue to closely monitor the storm’s aftermath, and we anticipate providing additional relief for other affected areas in the near future.” This same relief was provided to Hurricane Harvey victims.

FBAR Filing

In addition, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has announced that Hurricane Irma victims in the affected areas will have until January 31, 2018, to file their Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) report for the 2016 calendar year.

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